Maryann Ridini Spencer is screenwriter, journalist, TV Host, TV & Film producer/director, author, and member of both the

Writers Guild of America, West The Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) is a labor union representing film, television, radio, and new media writers. It was formed in 1954 from five organizations representing writers, including the Screen Writers Guild. It has around 20,000 m ...

and the

Producers Guild of America The Producers Guild of America (PGA) is a 501(c)(6) trade association representing television producers, film producers and New media, New Media producers in the United States. The PGA's membership includes over 8,000 members of the producing esta ...

. Spencer graduated with a degree in communications from

Hofstra University Hofstra University is a private university in Hempstead, New York. It is Long Island's largest private university. Hofstra originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University (NYU) under the name Nassau College – Hofstra Memorial of Ne ...

in Hempstead, New York, where she served as co-program director of the college station and worked as a teaching apprentice in the university's TV Production studios.

Work in Theatre

Spencer began her career in the performing arts at 12, working in her local community theatre in Syosset, New York. At the age of 16 she secured a position as an acting apprentice with The Hampton Playhouse in Hampton, New Hampshire. She also performed and worked as an acting apprentice at The New London Barn Playhouse in

New London, New Hampshire New London is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,400 at the 2020 census. The town is the home of Colby–Sawyer College. The town center, where 1,266 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as t ...

. She later won special commendations for her acting, placing in the top level of The New York City and Staten Island Dramatic Invitationals.

Work in Public Relations & Marketing

Spencer worked as Senior Vice President of Publicity, Advertising & Promotions at

Stephen J. Cannell Stephen Joseph Cannell (; February 5, 1941 – September 30, 2010) was an American television producer, writer, novelist, occasional actor, and founder of Cannell Entertainment (formerly Stephen J. Cannell Productions) and the Cannell Studios. ...

Productions, supervising publicity and marketing initiatives for The Cannell Studios' facilities in Los Angeles and Vancouver. While at the studio she worked on campaigns for such series as: "Hunter," " Wiseguy", "

21 Jump Street ''21 Jump Street'' is an American police procedural television series that aired on the Fox network and in first run syndication from April 12, 1987, to April 27, 1991, with a total of 103 episodes. The series focuses on a squad of youthful-loo ...

," and "

Sonny Spoon ''Sonny Spoon'' is an American crime drama television series that aired on NBC television network from February 12 to December 16, 1988. The series was created by Michael Daly, Dinah Prince, Stephen J. Cannell, and Randall Wallace and produced by ...

." Before that, Maryann worked as Director of Publicity for Miss Universe, Inc., supervising the national and international publicity for the "

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stre ...

", "Miss USA" and "Miss Teen USA" Pageants. Working at a number of high-profile PR agencies, she also supervised campaigns for such series as: " Star Trek: The Next Generation" (Paramount), " American Gladiators" (Samuel Goldwyn Company) "Wheel of Fortune" (Merv Griffin Enterprises) and many others.

Ridini Entertainment Corporation

In 1990 Spencer founde
Ridini Entertainment Corporation
(REC), a public relations, marketing, website/blog design and TV & Film Production company. REC handled public relations and marketing campaigns for top brands including The United States Olympic Committee, NBC/Universal,

E! Entertainment Television E! (an initialism for Entertainment Television) is an American basic cable channel which primarily focuses on pop culture, celebrity focused reality shows, and movies, owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of NBCUniversa ...

and Concorde-New Horizons, Corp. (

New Concorde New Concorde (NC) is an American Los Angeles, California based film distribution company founded by Roger Corman. NC got its start in 1983 when Corman formed the production and distribution Concorde-New Horizons (CNH) as one of the first producti ...

TV/Film Writer & Producer

Under REC's banner, Spencer has served in various producer capacities on a number of television and film projects for the

Showtime Networks Showtime Networks Inc. is an American entertainment company that oversees the company's pay television, premium cable television television channel, channels, including its flagship service Showtime (TV network), Showtime. It is a subsidiary of me ...

USA Networks The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

SyFy Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Launc ...

, Movie Channel, and foreign theatrical. In 2011, Spencer co-wrote and produced "

The Lost Valentine ''The Lost Valentine'' is a 2011 Hallmark Hall of Fame made-for-television drama film starring Jennifer Love Hewitt, Betty White and Sean Faris. It is based on the novel by James Michael Pratt of the same name, previously titled ''The Last Val ...

" starring

Betty White Betty Marion White (January 17, 1922December 31, 2021) was an American actress and comedian. A pioneer of early television, with a television career spanning almost seven decades, White was noted for her vast work in the entertainment indust ...

and

Jennifer Love Hewitt Jennifer Love Hewitt (born February 21, 1979) is an American actress and singer. Hewitt began her career as a child actress and singer, appearing in national television commercials before joining the cast of the Disney Channel series ''Kids I ...

. The project was a collaborative effort between Hallmark Hall of Fame Productions in association with Paulist Productions, Atchity Entertainment International an
Ridini Entertainment Corporation
Spencer originally optioned the novel, "The Last Valentine" from novelist

James Michael Pratt James Michael Pratt is an American writer. His novel ''The Lost Valentine'' (originally published as ''The Last Valentine'') was adapted into a The Lost Valentine, film released by Hallmark Hall of Fame in 2011. He has been called a ''Master o ...

. The film, which aired on January 30, 2011, on CBS-TV, received critical acclaim and was Hallmark Hall of Fame's most highly rated movie in four years, winning the night for CBS with over 14.6 million viewers tuning in.

TV/Print Journalist & TV Host

Spencer worked as a freelance journalist throughout her career, writing for publications such as Palm Springs Life,

Desert Magazine ''Desert Magazine'' was a monthly regional publication based in the Colorado Desert published between 1937 and 1985. A print version bearing the same name has been revived in the Coachella Valley town of Palm Desert near Palm Springs, California. ...

, and Totally Local VC, among others. From 2010-2018, she had a weekly print and video column with the

Ventura County Star The ''Ventura County Star'' (Marked online as VC Star) is a daily newspaper published in Camarillo, California and serves all of Ventura County. It is owned by Gannett, the largest publisher of newspapers in the United States. It is a successor ...

titled "Simply Delicious.". She also hosts and produces the cooking/lifestyle TV series "Simply Delicious Living with Maryann" seen on PBS-TV in Southern California, The Roku Channel, First Run TV Syndication and ifood.tv.

Cookbook Author & Novelist

Spencer published the cookbook "Simply Delicious Living with Maryann - Entrees" via Santa Rosa Press, a publishing company operated alongside Ridini Entertainment, in 2013. Her first novel "Lady in the Window" received the 2017 Best Book Award for Fiction: Romance, as well as the 2018 American Fiction Award for Visionary Fiction. Her sequel novel, "The Paradise Table: a Kate Grace Mystery," was published by Santa Rosa Press on October 22, 2019. The third book in the Kate Grace Mysteries, "Secrets of Grace Manor," placed as a finalist in the category Fiction: Inspirational at the 2021 Best Book Awards.

References

External links

Maryann Ridini Spencer Official Website

YouTube Interview

TV Guide
Tonight's TV Hot List
Ridini Entertainment Corporation Official Website

Maryann Ridini Spencer
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer, Maryann American women screenwriters American television producers American women television producers Hofstra University alumni American film producers Living people Year of birth missing (living people)